“Count your age by friends, not years.

Count your life by smiles, not tears.”

~ John Lennon

I love my birthday week ~ the birthday eve, the birthday itself and then following days which I find blissful. I have always loved my birthday and I can only say that it’s become more precious to me as the years pass. Probably because I continue to be so grateful that I am still here after all I’ve endured. I find the dawn most pleasant for the new day ~ the optimism which embraces me as I rise to greet the morning. I love dusk as well, for as I prepare to lay my head on the pillow, I hold most sacred that I have tried to be a good person (and if I haven’t, then I ask forgiveness).

I have been blessed with an abundance of birthday greetings which nestle into my heart to hold for the coming year. Knowing that I have had so many sweet people take a moment out of their busy lives to say hello and wish me well has swollen my heart and soul with so much love! My heartfelt thanks to all of you! ♥

I love the above quote which I got via email from Contagious Optimism today. How perfect for me to share today! I begin my mornings by reading a few positive emails from different places and this is one of my favorites! You can sign up to receive a quick inspirational quote every morning from them. Make sure you take a moment to check them out! Just a little tidbit of positivity for you!

May you find peace within today and always. May your lives be filled with love and joy. May you feel blessed, for you truly are. Thanks for connecting with me. You are simply the best!

Love, isn’t that what this whole world is about? Heaven on Earth is found when we are loving. At least that’s what I’ve found in my own life. It’s a choice my friends to live with a loving heart and not allow circumstances to erode away our loving essence. We all endure painful experiences throughout our lifetimes, but it is how we deal with them and what we do with the knowledge that the experiences bring to us is what counts.

I believe that when we connect with loving hearts and outstretched hands in friendship that we can heal ourselves. For me, it is in being supported and in supporting others that we remain true to our essence and our Dharma (our life purpose). We have the ability to heal broken hearts, financial issues, our health and every other negativity simply by remaining true and steadfast in love. It’s not always easy. I believe it is a choice to look to the good when ugly experiences occur. I do know that this can be a difficult task, but it is not impossible. Being loving is an innate ability that we all share, but sometimes it is hard to reach within and find it in ourselves which is why connecting with others helps to heal us, strengthen our loving selves and to enable us to move forward on our life journeys.

Never lose sight of the love within you. It radiates when given freedom to shine. Allow yourself to shine!

I see your light from here!

Shine On!

xo

P.S. The above photo came from Contagious Optimism which is a loving place where like-minded people rejoice in goodness. Take a moment to click and be inspired! ♥ Thank you to JHAngel and AMAngel for introducing me me to them!

To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble,

but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven.– Johannes A. Gaertner

I just love when God/Spirit/Universe writes my posts for me by delivering the quote of the day! The synchronicity is not lost on me; instead I am grateful for it. So in true form, this morning’s email produced the above quote from a book called Contagious Optimism. It’s a compilation of many stories from different authors and everyday people who share their optimism with you. A friend of mine is one of the contributors to this wonderful book which I highly recommend. Thanks JAngel for all that you do for me!

I try to live in gratitude ~ remembering to be thankful, saying thank you to the person who waits an extra moment to hold the door open for me and to, in turn, do the same for someone else. Growing up, saying thank you was simply called good manners and was ingrained in our brains from early on. Doing a kindness for someone else, was also a lesson we were taught as children. But to live in gratitude has been a lesson that I have learned as an adult ~ a lesson which I have been, dare I say…forever grateful?

I’ve done the 30 day gratitude challenge click here for day 8’s post and loved every moment of it. Sending a card every day to someone different in order to thank them for a kindness gave me a lot of clarity during my Dad’s illness and unexpected passing. It gave me more joy than it gave them I think as it allowed me to concentrate on what I had and to be grateful for every kindness whether big or small.

Contagious Optimism is a great place to start your day ~ click here to see what they are all about! You can sign up for a quote every morning like me ~ you can share YOUR stories and maybe even be published in their book series ~ and you can read other stories of others ups and downs in order to spread that Contagious Optimism which brings us happiness!

Shine On!

xo

P.S. Can someone please help me? My spacing has gone wacky ~ no longer am I able to separate paragraphs! Has this happened to you?

Your Daily Motivation:Don’t be afraid of change, be afraid of not changing.

-Joel Heller, a Contagious Optimism co-author

Full moons, blue moons, times they are a’changing. Do you feel it or is it just me? I feel like I’m in a cyclone these days. Perhaps that’s why I’m needing space and I can’t seem to get it. So instead, I’m like the frog in the blender ~ round and round with no escape hatch open.

I don’t mean to sound down, because I’m really not ~ I”m just trying to weather the storm inside. I’m trying to figure out what I want. It’s not that I’m unhappy with my circumstances because I’m fine with all of that ~ but obviously from the health issues I’ve been dealing with, it’s my mind/body/soul which needs some TLC (tender loving care) and I believe that I’ve neglected her for too long. I’ve put her on the back burner so that I could deal with the impending firestorms, knowing that her needs could wait…like always.

But my body is swelling, with no rational reasons, and when I listen to that tiny voice inside my gut, I know. She’s saying, Pick ME Pick ME ~ ME FIRST!

And so, I am listening.

I will tell you that I am afraid of change, but I am more afraid of not changing this path that I”m on and that’s why this amazing quote was so great today. If you’re inspired by the above quote, make sure you check out the book below ~ you can find it on Amazon (for some reason, WP wouldn’t let me link it for you, so here’s the picture!